1. Field of the Invention
The invention herein pertains to floor cleaning machines and particularly to floor and baseboard cleaning machines which are electrically powered.
2. Description of the Prior Art and Objectives of the Invention
Rotary and other floor cleaning machines have been used in the past which utilize non-woven fabric disks for wax application and removal, cleaning, scouring, polishing and other maintenance activities. In commercial and institutional maintenance, baseboards become soiled and must be constantly hand cleaned by custodians or other workers. Baseboard cleaning is particularly important in medical laboratories, food handling areas, operating rooms and other critical locations requiring the utmost in sanitation. Various baseboard cleaning devices have been devised in the past such as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,691,403 and 4,606,092. While such devices are useful in certain situations, such previous devices are limited in their function and adaptability and the particular need for a versatile machine which will operate in a relatively confined space has not been satisfied until the present invention was conceived.
Thus, with the problems and disadvantages associated with prior art cleaning equipment as mentioned above, the present invention was developed and one of its objectives is to provide a floor and baseboard cleaning machine which is relatively easy to operate by unskilled personnel.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a floor and baseboard cleaning machine which includes a handle with an electric motor assembly pivotally attached thereto with a frame for attaching cleaning medium such as non-woven pads.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a floor and baseboard cleaning machine which includes a reservoir for containing a liquid cleaner which can be sprayed through a rotatable nozzle onto the floor and/or baseboard.
It is still another objective of the present invention to provide a floor and baseboard cleaning machine in which the motion of the cleaning medium can be adjusted for either a straight line or circular cleaning motion at variable speeds.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide a floor and baseboard cleaning machine which includes a medium frame driven by the motor assembly with the cleaning medium releasably attached thereto.
It is yet still another objective of the present invention to provide a floor and baseboard cleaning machine in which the medium frame includes a pivotal section which can be raised to a vertical posture for cleaning baseboards and which can be lowered to a horizontal posture for cleaning floors.
Various other objectives and advantages of the present invention become apparent to those skilled in the art as a more detailed presentation is set forth below.